The present invention relates to a device and technique for limiting fibroplasia around nerves, and specifically, proximate the spinal canal, such as may occur after a decompression procedure.
Decompression procedures are performed to release pressure on a nerve trunk by surgically excising constricting bands of tissue or widening a bony canal through which the nerve trunk passes. Details concerning decompression procedures are provided in "Spondylolisthesis Treated by a Single-Stage Operation Combining Decompression with in Situ Posterolateral and Anterior Fusion," Michael D. Smith, Henry H. Bohlman, Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Vol. 72-A, No. 3, pages 415-421, March 1990; "Lumbar Spondylolisthesis and Nerve-Root Compression, Operative Experience with 19 Cases Without Spinal Fusion," A. Benin; Neurochirurgia, 23:167, 1980; and "Spinal Cord Injury, Spinal Fracture, and Spinal Stenosis in Ankylosing Spondylitis," Philip R. Weinstein, Robert R. Karpman, Eric P. Gall, and Michael Pitt, Journal of Neurosurgery, 57:609-616, 1982; all of which are herein incorporated by reference.
An unfortunate consequence of such procedures is the formation of scar tissue adjacent the exposed nerve trunk or dura. Scar tissue formation surrounding the dura or nerve trunk tends to contract and calcify, thereby compressing the nerve or spinal cord. Such compression often results in neural complications including for instance, pain in the lower back and hip radiating down the back of the thigh, and dysfunction of the bowel and bladder. Accordingly, there is a need to minimize scar tissue formation around a nerve trunk, and particularly, to limit fibroplasia and recalcification around nerves subsequent to a decompression procedure.